Penn State's Hall claims Southern Scuffle title

Mark Hall won the Southern Scuffle title at 174 (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com)

While the Nittany Lion wrestling team preps for its Big Ten opening dual road swing this weekend, six Penn Staters took part in the Southern Scuffle in Chattanooga, Tenn. True freshman Mark Hall (Apple Valley, Minn.), red-shirting and wrestling unattached, dominated a loaded field to win the 174-pound title.

Hall went 5-0 with two pins and a major to claim the crown. He opened up the tournament with a pin of The Citadel's Martin Duane in the first round. He then majored Oklahoma State's Jordan Rogers, 12-4, in the second round. In the quarterfinals, Hall faced top-seed Casey Kent of Penn, who was ranked No. 3 nationally. Hall took care of Kent with a dominating 9-4 win to move into the semifinals. He pinned Lehigh's Ryan Preisch, ranked No. 15 nationally, at the 6:29 mark and advanced to the championship round where he took on Oklahoma State's Kyle Crutchmer. Crutchmer entered the tournament ranked No. 6. Hall dominated the Cowboy grappler, opening up an early 6-0 lead before rolling to a 10-3 victory.

The Nittany Lions head into the Big Ten dual slate 4-0 on the year and have won 21 straight duals dating back to the end of the 2014-15 campaign. The Nittany Lions were scheduled to compete at the Reno Tournament of Champions in Reno, Nev., on Dec. 18 but weather prevented Penn State from travelling to the event. The squad has not wrestled since Dec. 11.

Penn State will open up Big Ten dual meet action on Friday and Sunday, Jan. 6-8, 2017, on the road. The Nittany Lions visit Minnesota on Friday, Jan. 6, at 8 p.m. Eastern and Nebraska on Sunday, Jan. 8, at 3 p.m. Eastern. Penn State's next home dual is set for Friday, Jan. 13, when Rutgers invades Rec Hall for a 7 p.m. Big Ten dual. All Rec Hall dual meets are sold out, but a very limited number of Standing Room Only tickets can be purchased by calling 1-800-NITTANY. Penn State Fans are encouraged to follow Penn State wrestling via twitter at @pennstateWREST, on Penn State Wrestling's Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pennstatewrestling and on Instagram at www.instagram.com/pennstatewrest. The 2016-17 Penn State wrestling season is presented by The Family Clothesline. This is PENN STATE. WRESTLING lives here.